A Pure Heart
by real love stories
Summary: With Klaus and his entire bloodline including Tyler dead, Caroline and Stefan leave Mystic Falls together, both with broken hearts they try to rebuild their lives and each other. After the S3 finale.
1. Chapter 1

Never Let Me Go

Elena has chosen to be with Damon after they take down Klaus. With Klaus dead, and his entire bloodline including Tyler dead, Caroline and Stefan both leave Mystic Falls together, both broken hearted they try to rebuild their lives and each other. After the S3 finale.

_~.~_

_And it's breaking over me_

_A thousand miles down to the sea bed_

_Found the place to rest my head_

_Never let me go_

_Never let me go_

_~.~_

Stefan had never really prepared himself for the day when he finally left Mystic Falls.

Granted, he always assumed that he would be leaving with Elena when they were both older, after she'd graduated from high school. Crazy in love, they would chase sunrises together all over the world. They would wake up together and go to sleep together. Spend days walking cobblestone paths, hand in hand as Stefan told her stories from his collection of memories - memories about Lexie, about his double date with Hugh Hefner and the playmates, and then, finally (after a few too many sangrias) about his mother. Nights would be filled with incredible food and wine, they'd make love under the stars, under the northern lights, anywhere they wanted – they had a list to get through after all. A sex list, he chuckled, as he remembered Elena's serious face as she told him her idea, "Don't laugh at me," She'd told him, her hands on her hips, "You're just jealous you didn't think of it first."

Now that seemed like nothing but a distant memory, or maybe a hopeless dream.

Regardless, he was living the very nightmare he couldn't wake up from, the one where Elena didn't want him.

He'd handwritten a letter to both Elena and Damon, wishing them well but telling them not to contact him, or to try to find him, that it would only make his healing harder. He'd attached Elena's letter to his journal from 1863, before he'd met Katherine and everything had gotten so screwed up. Before he was a vampire, before he'd killed, back when he was simple boy with too many dreams to keep inside of his head.

_Dear Elena,_

_I'm not mad. Really, I'm not. I'm so proud of you, so amazed and in awe of what a strong person you have become._

_I only wish you the best in life, because someone who has endured such pain in such a short life is more than deserving of a lifetime of happiness._

_Damon will be good for you. He'll take care of you in a way that I never could._

_I leave you my journal, maybe this is the man that you could have loved forever. _

_Always,_

_Stefan._

Even now, he could hear her muffled tears and she cried into the sleeve of Damon's shirt, as he himself read his own letter.

_Dear Damon,_

_I don't need to tell you to take care of her, I know that you will. _

_Although you'll never admit it, I know that your love can be infinite. I only ask that you give all of it to Elena. She's going to need you._

_Don't try to find me; I'm not lost or looking to be found. _

_You know that the world works in mysterious ways; so maybe we'll see each other again someday._

_Always,_

_Your Brother_

Finally he'd left an envelope addressed to Matt, inside were the keys to his Porsche and a short note.

_Take care of 'her'._

_-Stefan_

They'd never been that close, but it wasn't like he was ever going to need the car again and Matt would be over the moon.

"Are you ready?"

He turned to see Caroline, her face watching him cautiously from the driver's seat of her brand new black Ford Escape. He hadn't heard her pull up. As he looked at her face he could see the pain that she'd gone through, that they'd both gone through. For someone who was eternally seventeen like him, her face had aged ten years. Her eyes normally exuded warmth and happiness, not only when she looked at him, but when she looked at anyone. There wasn't any of that now. Only emptiness. Her beautiful blue eyes were dark and hollow.

It was just over a week ago that Elena had driven the white oak stake into Klaus' heart. Bonnie had weakened him to the point of desiccation and then Elena had finished him off. The relief of Klaus' death was short lived when Tyler too fell to the ground, as would the rest of Klaus bloodline Stefan assumed. There had been no time to save Tyler, no time to find another way to save his life. He'd said no final words…nothing. Stefan had watched the tears fall from Caroline's eyes as she hovered over him, his skin already the colour of ash, body lifeless. That's when the rain began, ripping through the town with the strength of a monsoon. He tore his eyes away from Tyler's practically melting body to see Elena turning to face him, her wide and panicked eyes scanning the clearing as she was drenched with rain. Stefan took a step forward, his heart in his throat as she turned away from him and ran straight into Damon's arms. He and Caroline had both lost someone they loved that day.

He turned back to look at his house one last time before nodding to Caroline and throwing his bag into the trunk of the car before sliding into the passenger seat.

"Where are we going?" Caroline asked him, her face was already beginning to regain some of its colour. They seemed to have that effect on one another.

"Wherever you want," Stefan replied nonchalantly. Anywhere but here was what he should have said.

"Well, I have enough cold blood bags in the trunk to last a few days-"Caroline told him as she pulled the car out onto the road.

"Somewhere with sun," Stefan replied at last, and immediately Caroline's eyebrow spiked upwards with curiousty as she turned her head to look at him. "-I've had enough rainy days,"

~.~

Caroline lay sprawled out on her sun lounger. Somehow, three weeks after they'd left town they'd ended up in Italy. They'd spent the first week or so driving, trying to get as far away from Mystic Falls as possible. They'd spent a few days in Canada, only to head straight to the airport when the rain started coming down in thick sheets. Stefan didn't have to say a thing, Caroline just packed her suitcase and they left. They purchased two tickets for a 'mystery flight' that afternoon -Caroline's idea.

"It's in fate's hands now," She'd said with a wide smile as she waved the boarding passes in front of his face. In that moment she was so far from the Caroline she'd been the last few weeks, so Stefan hadn't said or done anything to deter her. She had lost a lot too.

Now as she lay and watched the boats bob to and fro in the Italian Riviera, her face mostly covered by a ridiculously large pair of designer sunglasses she couldn't remember a time when she had been happier. She could hardly believe that the view in front of her was real, even with her heightened vampire senses she didn't think she'd ever seen anything more beautiful. She peeled her sunglasses off of her face and glanced down at the skin on her taut stomach.

"I've been out here for hours, and I'm not a shade darker-"

Stefan pushed his wayfarers onto the top of his head and turned to face Caroline. "I can't imagine why-"

Caroline sat up straighter and pulled her light yellow sundress over her bikini, "You almost made a joke, good for you. Hungry?"

He nodded, already shutting his book and standing up. He buttoned the buttons on his white linen shirt back up and slid his sunglasses back over his eyes. Caroline stayed perched on the edge of the sun lounge, watching him as he moved so gracefully. She took a moment to admire him. His face was finally starting to get some colour back. His eyes were clearer and greener, more beautiful. She paused at his strong jaw, and perfectly angled cheekbones that made her think that if you got too close they might just cut you with their sharpness. For a second she allowed herself to smile, he was healing.

"You won't be sad forever Stefan," She said softly, her blue eyes full of promises as he blinked back at her, knowing that was the truth.


	2. Chapter 2

"How is it that you have so much money?" Caroline asked over her shoulder as Stefan followed her around the Prada store in the Parisian fashion district.

He smirked, crossing his arms over his chest as she ran the fabric of an emerald green satin gown through her fingertips, watching him while she waited for his response.

"I've had a lot of jobs in my lifetime Caroline, and do you have any idea how much interest you gain on a bank account that's been around since 1864?"

"A lot?" Caroline guessed with a smirk as she pulled the dress off of the rack and held it up against her slender frame. She could tell just by looking at it that it would be a perfect fit, and she could always have it tailored or shortened later on.

Stefan nodded with a grin, "A lot."

She laughed, "Well you won't mind buying me this dress then will you?"

Stefan rolled his eyes at her, "Sure Care, what's a few thousand dollars on a scrap of fabric in the whole grand scheme of things, right?"

"Hey," She cooed at him, sensing his hostility. It didn't happen often, but sometimes his anger, usually buried so deeply would manage to slip in and surprise her, just how broken he still was. They'd been travelling around Europe for almost two months, and not once had she dared to utter the 'E' word. She knew he would break completely with the possibility of never being able to rebuild himself again. They both knew he would never stop loving Elena, just the way she would never stop loving Tyler.

"We fought the war, and I think that we came out okay-"Caroline ventured quietly, her blue eyes looking up at Stefan's usually green, but now clouding eyes. She rested her hand gently on his arm. "Come on; let's go grab a bite to eat,"

Stefan smiled slowly at that, vampire jokes were Caroline's specialty. He wanted to look at her and smile, but his head hung low on its own, his chin practically brushing his chest. So weighed down by his pain, his inner demons and his shame. "I'm sorry about the mood," He murmured under his breath, he knew that he never had to explain himself to Caroline let alone apologise, but it always made him feel a little better to know that she was being treated well. She deserved the best of everything. "We'll take this dress please," Stefan instructed as he handed his black AMEX to a sales assistant who had been hovering nearby, listening in on what she would have assumed to be a lovers tiff. How wrong she was. They never fought about anything.

"You didn't have to do that," Caroline told him, shaking her head as she looped her arm through his, her Prada shopping bag hanging from her other arm and swaying back and forth with each step. It was more than worth it to see her happy.

"It's only money Care,"

She rolled her eyes at him. It had taken her this long to truly figure out what things truly mattered to Stefan Salvatore. First and foremost was love, family and friends. Money was somewhere near the bottom of the list, just before reality TV and towels with too much starch.

"Hey!" Caroline blurted out suddenly, as she often did when a great idea crossed her mind, "Let's go out tonight, somewhere fun…with drinking, ooh and dancing-"

"Caroline-" Stefan interrupted in his deeply authoritive voice. He was about to burst her happy bubble, she could feel it…but she wasn't going to let him. She knew that if she didn't stop him, he was going to delve into a manic spiel about how there's too many brunettes who look like Elena, too much blood temptation and he's not ready.

"Stefan." She breathed out before he had a chance to speak again, "The best way to test your limits is to teeter on the edge, you need to explore your limits or how else do you expect to move past your pain?"

He nodded, "You make a valid point,"

He looked at her and cocked his head to the side, wondering how the 'shallow, kiddie pool girl' had matured and grown so much. When had she stopped caring only about herself and thrown all her heart and energy into caring for him? She'd lost Tyler, someone who she had loved and would literally never see again, but somehow she had moved past it, pushed it aside if only to save him from standing in the sunlight without his daylight ring because of the ache in his heart called Elena that was always with him. He didn't care what people said about him, it was Caroline who had a pure heart.

"I hope you know that I would never let you fall off the edge Stefan. Just think of me as your guard rail okay? I'll keep you from doing anything even remotely dangerous or monstrous," She almost laughed because right now there was nothing even remotely monstrous about Stefan Salvatore. He could have been a model on a billboard; there was nothing even remotely ugly or monstrous about him.

"We can have a few drinks, but I can't guarantee any dancing," He smirked at her as she grinned like a mad woman and dragged him into a bar.

Caroline had compelled the bartender into giving them free drinks all night and was now knocking back her thirteenth shot of tequila. Stefan was equally as buzzed, having consumed several glasses of scotch on top of that.

The music switched to Kiss With A Fist by Florence + The Machine and Caroline leapt to her feet, already starting to expertly wiggle her hips from side to side as she pulled him onto the dance floor.

"Come on Salvatore show me some moves!"

He shook his head at her stubbornly, feet planted firmly on the ground, "I wouldn't be caught dead dancing to this song Caroline or any song for that matter-"

"Lucky your already dead then, come on!" She begged, her bottom lip sticking out in a pout and suddenly he can't say no to her or that quivering bottom lip. It's like she learned that move from Elena herself. Elena. Fuck. Suddenly he's frozen in his place, watching Caroline as she danced with her hands up above her head, having the time of her life.

"One dance," She tried again, and he shook his head at her already on his way back to their seat at the bar and another drink.

But something stopped him, or someone stopped him. His breath caught in his chest as he spotted the familiar cloak of dark hair on the other side of the bar. His eyes grew wide and he was only vaguely aware of Caroline's voice asking where the hell he was going in his ear as he walked away from her and made his way across the bar like he was floating, completely drawn to her. The brunette put up absolutely no fight as Stefan dragged her into the restroom and locked the door behind them, then again why would she? Stefan was perfect and it was her lucky night. He kept repeating to himself how fucked up this was, but it didn't stop him. He wasn't thinking straight, all five of his senses just kept reminding him of the blood that coursed around her body and how badly he needed it.

He'd yet to see her face, (he hadn't really wanted to) and as he pressed her chest into the wall and his lips to her neck he could have sworn that she groaned out his name. He made her heart beat so loudly that it rung in his ears. It could have been Elena's pulse he was quickening, Elena's knees he was making weak, Elena he was making come completely undone as he unbuttoned her jeans and felt her through her lace underwear. He was going to enjoy this. She was the same height as Elena, her hair was a little shorter maybe, otherwise she could have been another Petrova doppelganger. Maybe she really was Elena, or maybe he was just losing his mind.

"I'm going crazy without you," He grounded out as he entered her, hard and fast. He held her hands against the wall, his lips and tongue running down her neck and making her gasp out. He came just after she did. She hadn't even had a second to recover as he bit into her neck, taking it all, completely sucking her dry until her body fell onto the dirty floor in a heaped mess. He stared down at her for a few moments before he readjusted his jeans, pulling them back onto to his hips and doing them back up. She wasn't Elena, and suddenly he felt the emptiness again.

Caroline burst in moments later, screaming things at Stefan that he couldn't understand through the thick veil of ecstasy the blood had given him. He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand as he blinked up at her.

What had he _done?_

* * *

_Woo, that was a quick update for me! :) I hope you enjoyed it, I really wanted to make Stefan seriously messed up so that he has some major healing to do: with the help of Caroline of course ;) _


	3. Chapter 3

**I feel like I'm updating on this story incredibly quickly! :) and I'm so happy to see that people are enjoying it. :) The reviews have been lovely, so thank you!**

* * *

Caroline disposed of the body of the brunette girl as best she could, and had to run to catch up with Stefan as he ducked out the back door of the club and into the crisp Parisian air. When she finally caught up to him, she walked along beside him, matching him step for step but even as a vampire it was a struggle to keep up with his frantic pace.

She doesn't speak to him just yet; she knows that his guilt is eating him from the inside out right now and nothing she could possibly say would make anything any better for him right now. His walk is determined, his back rigid and controlled like he feels like he could just _snap_ at anytime and at anyone. Luckily there's on one around but her. She's never seen him look so brooding before; his expression is almost erring on bitter. But she knows that it's just his self loathing resurfacing.

"Why did I do that Caroline?" He turns suddenly and shouts at her. He looks menacing, his fangs aren't out but Caroline possibly thinks that she's never seen him look this scary before. But she knows that he won't hurt her; he only wants to hurt himself.

"Because you're hurting," She replied softly. He sees something flash across his face for a second, consideration maybe? And then a split second later it's gone. Replaced with even more anger than before.

"Why are you even here?" He spits at her, finally meeting her eyes.

His anger towards her shocks her a little, but she _knows_, and she understands. He's hurting. So badly that it hurts her _too_, deep in her chest she aches for him.

"Because we're all each other has right now," She says in defeat because as much as it killed them both to admit it, it was the truth.

He stares at her, soaking in her words. He shoves his hands into the pockets of his jeans and Caroline takes the initiative to close the space between them, scanning his eyes for signs of the Stefan that had been with her a few hours ago. The Stefan that had been happy, smiling and free but she'd always wondered if it was all just an act, if he'd only pretended to be all those things. She knew he would play the part if it kept her happy; he never wanted to see her upset or worried, especially not over him.

"You don't have to be alone anymore okay? And you don't need to argue with me; I know what kind of angst goes on inside that head of yours Stefan Salvatore. It's exhausting for me just thinking about it. But regardless of everything I've always known that you're good on the inside, your heart is _pure_ Stefan, but you just accept that you've turned into this monster because it's easier than really feeling."

"I do feel Caroline, I feel everything okay?" He bit back at her. He yanked his hands out of his pockets and ran them through his hair. "That's the problem,"

"Then what happened tonight Stefan, really?" Caroline asked him sharply. Based on the dismembered body of the brunette she had dragged into a dumpster behind the club she had a pretty good idea, but she wanted to hear it from him.

He looked up at her, his green eyes wide. She knew that he trusted her. "I saw…I thought, I mean I saw her and I thought-"

"-She was Elena," Caroline guessed. Stefan's body flinched at the mention of her name. In that moment Caroline truly hated what Elena had done to him, she had destroyed Stefan. _Completely. _Caroline thought that she was crazy for choosing Damon.

"But it wasn't Elena." He said with relief as he shook his head, replaying the scene in his mind. "I still can't believe that I-"

"We're driven by bloodlust Stefan and sometimes these things happen…God knows I've had my fair share of slip ups," She tried to say as nonchalantly as possible. Honestly, she couldn't remember the last time she'd killed a human, or even drank from anything other than a blood bag. Stefan was so straight edged that it was no surprise to Caroline that he'd snapped. "You need to deal with your pain over losing Elena, or else we're going to be having a lot more nights like this one. You need to find comfort in something other than the blood Stefan,"

He listened to her, he always would but he still shook his head, "I didn't lose Elena, she chose Damon."

Caroline's hands were in tight fists now and she struggled to keep them by her sides, "You think that I don't have some idea how that feels? Everyone that I've ever loved has always picked Elena, everything was always about Elena. And the funny thing is, I always thought that you were too good for her…She never deserved you Stefan. What she did to you? That's proof of that!" She knew that she shouldn't have let herself get worked up over the details, but Stefan wasn't alone in feeling rejected. He _never_ had to be alone again.

Stefan dropped his brooding expression as he looked over at Caroline. She's hopelessly sad on the inside, just like he is.

"I've lost everything Care," He says quietly, knowing how selfish he sounded when Elena was still alive, and Tyler was dead. The person she _loved _was dead.

With the moonlight hitting his face, making perfect shadows over his cheekbones Caroline thinks that he looks impossibly beautiful. Yeah, there's absolutely no way that he's human. She's surprised that more people aren't suspicious.

Caroline nodded, she'd said everything that she needed to right now, the next move was his, "When you're ready, I'll be at the hotel. You haven't lost everything Stefan, you still have me. You'll always have me," She smiled at him softly and leant up so that she could press a gentle kiss to his cheek, then she turned and walked away feeling his gaze at her back.

~.~

It was just past 6am when she heard Stefan sneak back into their hotel room. Caroline had slept only in small blocks of time, she'd been too anxious to fall asleep completely and now that he was back she was exhausted, finally giving herself over to sleep. He moved about the room, making as much noise as possible, wanting her to wake up and yell at him but she never did. She continued to sleep soundly.

He knelt down at the side of her bed and wrapped his hand around her shoulder, gently shaking her, "Care, wake up. I have to show you something,"

She mumbled curse words incoherently at him and pulled the blankets up around her body, trying to block his silky voice out.

"Okay fine," He murmured as he reached under her blankets and scooped her up. He carried her easily, her face buried in his chest as she continued to sleep, if anything she slept more soundly now that she was pressed against him than before.

Stefan was fast and even with Caroline in his arms, he was still at their destination in under a minute. They were going to be just on time.

He coaxed her awake and set her down on her feet. He noticed for the first time how little clothes she had on, just a tank and shorts that she'd slept in. Stefan averted his eyes not wanting to make her uncomfortable, but Caroline seemed at ease as she squeezed his hand. Now that she was awake her eyes took in her surroundings, she was so desperate to remember every little detail that she completely forgot to feel self conscious.

The Eiffel Tower, Caroline smiled as she blinked up at it. "Are we going up there?"

Stefan nodded, "Absolutely,"

"But it's not even open yet…" She murmured, the sun hadn't even come up yet. It was completely disserted.

"Doesn't matter," He shrugged, his eyes were finally their beautiful shade of green again and they twinkled mischievously like he had a plan.

She looked at him and then at the tower's great height, "Please tell me that we're getting up there the easy way?"

He smirked at her, reaching for her hand, "Yes we're going to take the easy way,"

A split second later they were both at the top, their hands still grasped together. Caroline leant against the guardrail, their shoulders rubbing against each other.

"Thank you for what you said last night," He murmured softly.

She would only tear her eyes away from the nightlights of Paris for him, so she did. "You needed to hear it,"

He nodded gratefully. They both knew that he would probably snap again, that he'd hate her and hate himself. But they had an eternity to fix one another.

"This is something that Lexi and I always wanted to do, but we ran out of time-" He spoke softly as he looked down at his hand, it was still wrapped around Caroline's. But he didn't mind, in fact he liked it.

"You have me now," She replied. She didn't mean that she was a replacement; she was just stating the obvious.

"I know," He murmured softy, just as the sun broke away and started its ascent into the sky, their first Paris sunrise, "You have me too,"


End file.
